Luciano De Crescenzo (; 18 August 1928 – 18 July 2019) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

, film actor, director and

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

Biography

Born in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

, he grew up with actor

Bud Spencer Carlo Pedersoli (31 October 1929 – 27 June 2016), known professionally as Bud Spencer, was an Italian actor, professional swimmer and water polo player. He was known for action-comedy and Spaghetti Western roles with his long-time film partn ...

. De Crescenzo graduated in engineering and worked for IBM Italy until 1976, when he published the bestseller ''Così parlò Bellavista'' (''Thus spoke Bellavista''), a collection of facts and anecdotes about his city which sold 600,000 copies in Italy and was translated into numerous languages. Over the years De Crescenzo became an internationally successful author. In 1980 he debuted as actor in '' Il pap'occhio'', under the direction of his friend

Renzo Arbore Lorenzo Giovanni "Renzo" Arbore (; born 24 June 1937) is an Italian television host, singer, actor and film director. Career Arbore became nationally recognized as radio anchor man, together with Gianni Boncompagni, in the late 1960s, with ...

, together with

Roberto Benigni Roberto Remigio Benigni (; born 27 October 1952) is an Italian actor, comedian, screenwriter and director. He gained international recognition for writing, directing and starring in the Holocaust comedy-drama film ''Life Is Beautiful'' (1997), f ...

. In 1981 he made his TV debut alongside Renzo Arbore and

Lory Del Santo Loredana "Lory" Del Santo (born 28 September 1958) is an Italian television personality and actress, now retired. Early life Lory Del Santo was born Loredana Del Santo on 28 September 1958, in Povegliano Veronese, a ''comune'' in the Itali ...

in successful and innovative show ''Tagli, ritagli e frattaglie''. In 1984 he directed the successful movie adaptation of ''Così parlò Bellavista'' (in which he also played the protagonist), followed by ''Il mistero di Bellavista'' in 1985. In 1995 he wrote and directed ''Croce e delizia'', featuring

Teo Teocoli Antonio "Teo" Teocoli (born 25 February 1945) is an Italian actor, TV conductor, singer and writer appearing in about 30 mostly Italian productions since 1975. Selected filmography * ''Paolo e Francesca'' (1971) * '' The Boss and the Worke ...

and

Isabella Rossellini Isabella Fiorella Elettra Giovanna Rossellini (born 18 June 1952) is an Italian-American actress, author, philanthropist, and model. The daughter of the Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman and the Italian film director Roberto Rossellini, she is noted ...

. In the meantime he published a long series of books, including novels and popularizations of philosophy. For his work in the field of

Greek philosophy Ancient Greek philosophy arose in the 6th century BC, marking the end of the Greek Dark Ages. Greek philosophy continued throughout the Hellenistic period and the period in which Greece and most Greek-inhabited lands were part of the Roman Empi ...

he received honorary citizenship of

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

in 1994. Between 1977 and 2019, he published a total of fifty books, selling 18 million copies worldwide, of which 7 million in Italy. His works have been translated into 19 languages and published in 25 countries. * ''Così parlò Bellavista ''(1977) * ''Raffaele ''(1978) * ''La Napoli di Bellavista ''(1979) * ''Zio Cardellino ''(1981) * ''Storia della filosofia greca. I presocratici ''(1983) * ''Oi dialogoi ''(1985) * ''Storia della filosofia greca. Da Socrate in poi ''(1986) – ''The History of Greek Philosophy: Socrates and Beyond'' * ''Vita di Luciano De Crescenzo scritta da lui medesimo ''(1989) * ''Elena, Elena, amore mio ''(1991) * ''Il dubbio ''(1992) * ''Croce e delizia ''(1993) * ''Socrate ''(1993) * ''I miti degli dei ''(1993) * ''Panta rei ''(1994) * ''Ordine e disordine ''(1996) * ''Nessuno ''(1997) * ''Sembra ieri ''(1997) * ''Il tempo e la felicità ''(1998) * ''Le donne sono diverse'' (1999) * ''La distrazione ''(2000) * ''Tale e quale ''(2001) * ''Storia della filosofia medioevale ''(2002) * ''Storia della filosofia moderna. Da Niccolò Cusano a Galileo Galilei ''(2003) * ''Storia della filosofia moderna. Da Cartesio a Kant ''(2004) * ''I pensieri di Bellavista ''(2005) * ''Il pressappoco ''(2007) * ''Il caffe sospeso. Saggezza quotidiana in piccoli sorsi ''(2008) * ''Ulisse era un Fico ''(2010) He was hospitalized in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

in July 2019. De Crescenzo died several days later on 19 July at the age of 90.

Bibliography

* Tutti santi me compreso, Milano, A. Mondadori, 2011. * Fosse 'a Madonna!, Milano, A. Mondadori, 2012. * Garibaldi era comunista, Milano, A. Mondadori, 2013. * Gesù è nato a Napoli, Milano, A. Mondadori, 2013. * Ti porterà fortuna. Guida insolita di Napoli, Milano, A. Mondadori, 2014.

Filmography (director)

* ''

Così parlò Bellavista ''Così parlò Bellavista'' is a 1984 Italian comedy film based on the novel of the same name by Luciano De Crescenzo. De Crescenzo directed the film and also played the main role. For this film De Crescenzo won David di Donatello and Nastro d'Arg ...

'' (1984) * ''Il mistero di Bellavista'' (1985) * ''32 dicembre'' (1987) * ''Croce e delizia'' (1995)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:De Crescenzo, Luciano 1928 births 2019 deaths Writers from Naples 20th-century Italian novelists 20th-century Italian male writers 21st-century Italian novelists Italian essayists Male essayists Italian film directors Italian television personalities Engineers from Naples Bancarella Prize winners David di Donatello winners Nastro d'Argento winners Italian male novelists Male actors from Naples 21st-century Italian male writers Italian male non-fiction writers Mass media people from Naples